


late night thoughts

by Antarktica



Category: How to Get Away with Murder
Genre: F/F, Fluff, Mutual Pining, highkey pining no follow up, okay they kind of suck at this whole admit to each other thing, this is set in some obscure universe where there's not much death following after them kind of
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-13
Updated: 2020-07-16
Packaged: 2021-03-05 03:48:45
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 2,009
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25247911
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Antarktica/pseuds/Antarktica
Summary: “Are you worried about something?”“Us.”“You’re worried about us? Nothing bad is going to happen to us, Tegan.”
Relationships: Annalise Keating/Tegan Price
Comments: 22
Kudos: 42





	1. fool

**Author's Note:**

> tegalise nation!!! i have arrived so late but i am here to DROP all my emotions through writing. 
> 
> my twitter is @616QIAOLIAN; the place where i cry about the lack of tegalise fics so i write it myself. hope you like this one. its brief and meant to console myself after the finale. (the fics will probably get angstier as i keep writing for them so enjoy these times)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> tegan thinks annalise doesn't reciprocate her feelings and feels like a fool for pretending it's okay.

Okay. Maybe she was a fool. She couldn’t make up her mind, trusted her gut throughout every rumor that pointed her to the bad side, the ugly side of Annalise Keating. They were always mistaken about her. A powerful woman was never molded into existence through the ruins of her fellow woman’s career. That wasn’t who Tegan was. It will never be her. 

Annalise said cruel words to her one night. Out of the blue, in an attempt to try and scare her away. That perhaps, the ruins left in Annalise wake was what guided Tegan to her. She felt hurt at that. Annalise wanted that and she got it. It was all Tegan let Annalise win in though. Because no matter how many thorns there are surrounding Annalise, she would not hesitate to hold her hand through it.

And then she falls, somewhere in the middle of it. Not a school girl crush. Something deeper and permanent and dangerous. Maybe she runs from it. Or Annalise saves her from running away from it, by keeping her distance. By leaving her alone after Emmett died, in the same office she calls her own now.

Or it could just be her brain, finding ways to forgive Annalise when she didn’t deserve to be forgiven for something she hasn’t even apologized for. Her mind doubts this abyss she’s falling into but her heart is way past the falling, already getting up and searching for clarity.

Damn, for being such a boss bitch, she had to add ‘dumb’ before the description today. She did have a right to be mad at Annalise leaving her all of a sudden. And she still covered her ass. Tegan didn’t realize she hated herself that much until much reflection.

Who are other people to judge her anyway? Annalise is a friend before everything else to Tegan. And probably will stay just as a friend. She didn’t have time for wishful thinking anyway. If a friend is all could Annalise give her room for in her life, Tegan was willing to fill that space. It doesn’t mean that the thought doesn’t crush her.

So what if she would make a thousand quips every day to make the woman laugh? Smiling did look better on her face, anyway. Tegan loves seeing it and if she had the power to do it, she’ll use it to her advantage for all she cares. 

Her hand reaches out to the bottle of gin on her nightstand, downing the remains of it. It burns. But not like how Annalise makes her feel. Cheap gin could never compare to Annalise. She laughs at the thought, all the while her hand lets go of the bottle and holds her phone. 

She wasn’t just a fool.


	2. warmth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> annalise thinks tegan is way beyond her league and never thinks otherwise.

Safety. She hasn’t felt it for the longest of times. And there she was, walking away from Tegan Price’s office after admitting that she felt  _ safe  _ around her and  _ with her _ . Maybe it was a farfetched idea her brain tossed out to satisfy the guilt from how shitty she had been treating Tegan, both as a friend and as a boss, lately.

Maybe.

Bonnie and Frank were basically part of her life. She wasn’t caught off guard then. She chose Bonnie to be part of her life, Frank chose Sam for her—but Frank chose to stay by her side. It was a fucked-up setup that Annalise could never undo. The pact that they would always need each other, despite hurting each other, all the knives they stuck and took out of each other’s backs. Her mind refuses to talk about Eve. She refuses to scavenge for the little happiness wrapped around the ball of pain that she threw mercilessly at Eve’s way. 

She sighs to herself, finding her hand stretched out at the phantom feeling of someone holding it.

Tegan. There is Tegan. A mortal enemy. A friend. An unexpected anchor in the shaky tides that was Annalise’s life. Tegan was the epitome of good timing. Annalise could at least admit that to herself. Her honesty. Her passion. Having a clean slate with someone as powerful and genuine of a force that was Tegan Price. It made Annalise feel something again. 

Annalise knew everyone had demons. Skeletons in their closet. She let those skeletons destroy her, chipping away at the light she thought she had every passing second.

Tegan did not act like that. She wore those skeletons, carved them into weapons to throw back at anyone who dared hurt her. And she extends the same regard she has for herself to Annalise too. 

And the thought frightens Annalise. Tegan is one of the few things good in her life. Tegan did not deserve her puddle of mess and darkness. It’s a conflict within her. Not wanting to taint Tegan’s sunshine but also wanting those eyes in her life. A hand always out to hold onto hers so tight as if she could slip away any moment.

(And she kind of did. She still hasn’t apologized for it. Not that Tegan would ever show her how betrayed she felt.)

She can’t refute the fact that Tegan is warmth.

Tegan’s little outbursts of joy always seemed to influence Annalise’s varying apathetic days. Like it held her together. It bugged her mind as if it should mean something to Annalise. She would catch herself looking at the little woman’s way, whenever she talked about something. It could’ve been work or meaningless banter between them, and Tegan has always had this  quick-witted mind, always inserting a quip in between her complaints. And Annalise feels herself smiling, in spite of herself and the heavy weight on her shoulders.

On her better days, maybe, she could make Tegan smile. She shakes her head at the thought, what was she, fifteen?


	3. lull me to sleep

Her phone rings, patiently waiting for the receiver to accept the call. Maybe she’d gone insane. Great, she was an insane fool this time. 

“ _ Tegan? _ ” Annalise’s voice is throaty, laced with drowsiness. That’s what being up at 4 am does to you it seems. 

“Hey.” What the fuck is a ‘hey’? Interrupting your friend’s peaceful night and all you say is a hey. Tegan buries her head in her pillows out of frustration, hoping Annalise wouldn’t hear.

“ _ You embarrassed yourself there? _ ”

“Okay, maybe.” She hears Annalise chuckle. “I just wanted to talk to someone, Annalise.”

“ _ And I’m on speed dial? _ ” No, Tegan just had her numbers memorized she can practically type it with her eyes closed. Of course, Annalise was on speed dial for her. And maybe she did have her numbers memorized but that’s not the point.

“Don’t think you’re that special.” Tegan says, willing herself to put up walls and distance.

_ “Oh, there’s someone above me?” _

“Asshole.” Annalise seemed particularly cocky on this phone call. Even entertained her quips and inserted her own. It felt like a declaration of war. Tegan just wasn’t sure whether to act out on it. 

_ “Really, I thought I was  _ _ the _ _ Annalise Keating.” _

Oh, now she’s testing her.

“Sure, there’s someone above  _ the  _ Annalise Keating.”

There’s silence in the line. She could hear Annalise breathing on the other side, calculating. Tegan is wondering if she’ll take the bait. 

_ “You’re lying, Tegan.” _

“Oh, you really think you’re that special in Tegan Price’s life?”

_ “Okay, I’m hanging up.” _

Tegan laughs, apologizing. “No-no, don’t hang up, I’ll stop messing with you even if you started it.” She could see Annalise rolling her eyes. She shifts on her bed, finding more comfort by laying on the pillows, waiting for Annalise to speak.

_ “Are you worried about something?” _

No, she was pondering by herself to death to what extent she could possibly ruin her friendship with Annalise, the woman she’s now talking with and asking her this question. Tegan’s shoulders shrugged and tensed with worry. She doesn’t know if she’s being a complete fool right now. 

“Us.” Tegan took a deep breath.

_ “You’re worried about us? Nothing bad is going to happen to us, Tegan.” _ The way Annalise quickly reassures her through mortal danger almost makes Tegan laugh. God, if that was the case, she wouldn’t worry at all, she was going to fight tooth and nail to keep them both safe. However, what Tegan was thinking about could possibly change them both astronomically.

“I know...”

_ “Go sleep now. You’re overthinking again.” _

“Lull me to sleep?”

_ “I’ll just hum whatever I’m thinking of.”  _ Annalise starts humming. Tegan finds herself settling deeper into the comfort of her bed until she realizes exactly what Annalise was humming. She was ridiculous for this.

“Why are you humming Wu Tang Clan’s CREAM?”

_ “Go to sleep, Tegan.” _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> now im not sure whether to end this here, but this is as far as ive written so tell me if you want more!


	4. friend

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “But you needed a friend.” 
> 
> “You’re not the only friend I have.” 
> 
> “Gin is not a friend.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i keep thinking about this moment and i had to write a fill-in sort of fix it for it lol

“Did you really sleep at the office last night?” It’s a question. Just a question. Annalise had a date that night and only got through her voicemails when the night ended. Maybe she feels bad—for ignoring the world like that. For ignoring Tegan. She’s not certain why she asks the question either, apart from the sake of asking it. The mug clicks as she pours herself her own cup of coffee. Her nerves will worsen but to hell with it, they had a few hours before work. 

Tegan is sat opposite to her, legs crossed, unhinged with a cup of coffee between her hands. 

“It’s okay, Annalise. You were on a date.” That sounded better in Tegan’s head. More polite, less jealous. But it came out of her mouth already, and it was more or less near the truth. She chides herself for a moment, waiting for Annalise’s response. 

“But you needed a friend.” 

“You’re not the only friend I have.” 

“Gin is _not_ a friend.” 

Annalise takes Tegan’s silence as a win, giving her a knowing look. Tegan raised an eyebrow in return. 

“You’re full of shit, Tegan.” 

“Okay, maybe I am hurt I got ignored like that.” Tegan surrendered, putting her hands up after downing her coffee in one go. She hated how Annalise always read people with point blank accuracy. Annalise smirked, looking smug. Tegan rolled her eyes.“Don’tyoudaretellmehe’ssleepingin...”

“Oh god, never. No.” Annalise immediately shook her head no, as if Tegan had been suggesting such a ludicrous thing. She honestly will not put it past Annalise. 

“Good, I thought you hated me that much.” Tegan shifted in her seat, relaxing her back on the couch. She wasn’t jealous or anything, it would just be a very uncomfortable nightmare reality to live in. Horrible enough she would literally rather go back to the office this early. God, she hated Robert’s annoying face. 

“ _You_ hate him that much, huh?” Annalise said, finding humor in Tegan’s furrowed brows. It didn’t quite make sense to her why the younger woman had such hate for the man. But seeing as how Robert treated Tegan as some sort of archenemy, Annalise only filed it under ‘friendly banter’ in her head. “He’s not the one I’m spending my mornings with.” 

If Tegan’s heart skipped a beat, that’s between her and the one above. “No-no, that’s not an apology, Annalise.” Tegan immediately says, waving her index finger no at Annalise’s direction. They were both full of shit sure, but Tegan was certain Annalise caught Robert’s annoying tendency. 

“Fine, what do you want me to do to make it up to you, Miss Price?” Annalise felt like messing around with Tegan some more. It’s not only Tegan who had the humor between them. It's just hers doesn’t usually come out most days (most days had bad news). 

“Skip work. I don’t want to work today.” 

“Managing Partner Miss Price.” Annalise added, knowing it would annoy Tegan and if not, bring her back to the reality of the situation. 

“Very hilarious, Annalise.” 

Their morning proceeds like that, light with banter and Tegan’s giggly laughter enveloping the penthouse. Annalise finds herself liking it that way. If she could hear phantom voices, she would rather hear Tegan’s. 


End file.
